Thursday, March 18, 2010

5km Classic, Here We Go!

The 5km classic is a race Andrea and I have been targeting for about a year now so we've really been emphasizing training on classic technique over skate so today was the day to lay it all on the line and see how things would turn out.

When we arrived on-site and went to get our skis, we realized that the wax techs had actually done the wrong skis for us. They did my warm and cold classic skis so I could warm up on my cold ones and race on my warm ones, which were better suited for the conditions, but for Andrea, they did her warm ones and an old pair of mine as her warm ups. Luckily, they were just for warm up, so no big deal!

I have to say that I was really nervous for this race, much more than for the biathlon pursuit especially because when Andrea and I did a quick check of the course, it was icy. Really icy! On the first downhill, I underestimated just how icy it was and slid right into the snow fence meant to keep skiers from going off course. Better still, because things were so icy, we had klister on our skis and for you non-skiers out there, it pretty much is like having honey on your skis, only stickier and I got my skis tangled up in the ski fence and needed a volunteer to come and rescue me! We carried on though to the longest uphill climb on the course and came rocketing down. I didn't bother checking my speed because at the bottom, there is a slight rise that I have always had to pole up, no matter how good my glide. That is, until today. I tucked the whole way down expecting to slow down at the rise, but it was so fast that Andrea had to get out of my way halfway down and I shot over the rise and instead of making the sharp right hand turn just after the rise, I sailed right between the v-boards (those blue pyramid-looking things that mark the course) and wiped out on the race course going the other direction! Oh yes, getting good glide wasn't going to be an issue today! Making the sharp turns on the course though.......

At that point, I headed back to the stadium to give feedback to our wax techs about how well our grip was working while Andrea headed out to do a quick check of the rest of the course. When she came back, she greeted me with "Well, I have good news and I have bad news." The good news was the course was in good shape and was fast the whole way. The bad news was that because it was so fast, we had to change our race plan. Andrea's suggestion was that we maximize our glide as much as possible, but that before each corner, we do a short snow plow to kill just enough speed to allow us to actually get around the corner. That sounded like a good tactic to me, but we both also knew that doing that could leave us with no grip for the latter part of the race because every time you snow plow, the abrasive condition of the icy snow would scrape some of the klister off our skis. But really, we didn't have an option because if we didn't do any speed checks, it was likely one or both of us would end up somewhere deep in the woods and way off course.

We put on our race skis and went out to test our grip wax only to find it was grabbing a little. Not good. The grip was so good that we could have climbed a wall, but the trade-off was that it was grippy when we needed the skis to be gliding, especially around corners! Grabby skis can actually cause significant injury if you are going fast and they suddenly grab, basically launching you forward as if you had hit a curb. Pulled muscles would not be out of the question, or worse. So we ran back to the wax hut and switched back to our warm up skis, which were actually getting just as good of grip without the grab. And the mistake the wax techs had made with waxing my old classic skis turned out to be a real blessing in that they are 5cm shorter than my race skis, making them easier to turn. The only thing the warm-up skis didn't have was the race glide wax, but with conditions already screamin' fast, that really wasn't an issue. In fact, slightly slower skis were what everyone was looking for!

We ran down to the start area and got ready to go and really, that is the worst part of racing! All I wanted to do was get out there. My favourite part of racing, other than the feeling of euphoria just after I finish a great race, is just after the start when all the butterflies just disappear and all I am thinking about is our race plan. The 5km classic went exactly to plan, with only a few minor hiccups and I was thrilled with that! At the finish line, I told Andrea I didn't care what our time was, we had done the best job possible! Turns out, it was the fastest time we've ever skied that course - 20:12 - and finished 11th overall. We both thought with how we raced, our time would have ranked us higher, but still, we did the best we could and can't be disappointed in that. I was so happy! Now, the sprints on Sunday!

1 comment:

She forgot the part where she tripped me on an uphill and I had to sommersault to get out of her way and then sprint like made to get ahead of her before the next corner! And the part where we went into the crazy S turn with 6 others skiers including two B1s (no vision at all) and all 8 came out the other side with only one broken pole. Good race!

About Me

BC Blind Sports

Without BC Blind Sports, I would not be the athlete I am today. No matter what sport I've taken on, they have been there to help me along the way. Being visually impaired, it's sometimes harder than for sighted people to access some sports. Just think how often you hop in your car and drive somewhere, such as hiking and ski trails. Or how you would safely cycle if you can't see road signs or street lights. BC Blind Sports makes all of this possible, plus more. A huge thank you to Jane, Mike, David and Susan for al of your support over the years

Canadian Athletes Now Fund

Being a high performance athlete in Canada isn't always financially easy to pull off. Just look at what this World Cup trip is costing Andrea and I - estimated cost right now is about $5,000 and that is just one trip. We still have to cover expenses for traveling to local training sites, trail passes, medical expenses like massage, physio, equipment such as waxes, clothing, etc., etc.... The CAN Fund has supported Andrea and I the last few years and were it not for them, I likely wouldn't have been able to come to these World Cup races because the cost would have been too much. So a huge thank you to Jane Roos and all the staff at the CAN Fund for making dreams come through for Canada's elite athletes!

If you want to support Canada's amateur athletes through an organization that really does help us, please visit www.canadianathletesnow.ca and make a donation. The final push on for supporting Canada's athletes training for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games is on right now!

My Favourite Ski Gear

I love everything Madshus - the skis, the poles and the boots. So a huge thank you to Reece Rendall from Madshus Canada who offered Andrea and I a sponsorship deal for this year. We now have all the gear we need for the 2010 Games, no matter what the conditions will be. Plus, Madshus donates a portion of sales to support of breast cancer research so that explains why our boots are pink. Yes, pink. I officially have girlie boots and I love them, thank you very much! If you want to check out Madshus for yourself, the website is www.madshus.com

My Favourite Gym

I've been weight training for sport for 18 years now and have seen my fair share of gyms, but the Gold's Gym in Burnaby is my favourite. There are lots of machines and free weights to keep things interesting, plus this is one of the few gyms that has a lifting platform with real bounce plates (they are make of rubber instead of iron) so when we do our Olympic lifts like power cleans and such, we aren't worried about what will happen to the floor if we drop them. As an added bonus, all of the cardio machines have TVs built right into them so I can catch up on the news or watch something entertaining while I get in some cardio, which is really good for the days I need to get in an hour or more on a stationary bike going nowhere fast. Thanks Patrick for giving me access to such an awesome facility!